Monday, February 07, 2005

Groundhog Day - Redux

That must be because Citizens fired the incompetent adjusting firms, right? Wrong:

Nor is the insurer interested at this time in taking blanket action against a bad vendor. Company officers said they were fearful of antagonizing the very contractors on which they still rely.

"We have to work with these firms for the moment," Glover said. "We don't want to do anything to disrupt the claims while they're still being closed."

Oh, that's right. It's Groundhog Day!

Well, at least the adjusting firms have been disciplined, right? Wrong again. Did you forget so soon? This is Tom Gallagher's Groundhog Day!

Even now the company shies from aggressive intervention. It has not fired a single claims administrator or taken all claims away from proven bad performers, relying instead on "strong words," Glover said.

You want 'strong words'? Try these: It has been four and half months since Hurricane Ivan. Tens of thousands of homes and husinesses in the Florida panhandle remain utterly devastated by the storm. If things persist as they have been, it will be several years before the area recovers. Tens of thousands of customers paid higher-than-market-price premiums for Citizens Property Insurance coverage. Yet--

"What you got was 'phantom adjusters'," said Paul Hulsebusch, an insurance specialist hired by Citizens between storms to launch an emergency catastrophe claims center.

It is past time to hold Citizens Property Insurance accountable. If state CFO Tom Gallagher won't do it, then the state senate of Florida should hold him accountable.